Crazy hypo in the morning

[PeteN11]

but I don't think anyone really knows, as it's not an experiment you do on purpose....

Or maybe "They" do not want us to know.

 

[Terry42]

This morning i had a really terrible experience.

i woke up around 6:00 and checked my bg: it was 12,2 mmol.

i decided to take my lantus log term insulin shot of 25 units.

i snoozed my alarm to wake up at 6:58 to wake up with a bg value of 2,2 and a further downward trend. 1 minute later my Libre indicated LOW. I immediately drank 1 liter of fruit juice (69g of carbs). 7:17 still low value and feeling dizzy.

so called an ambulance in case i wouldnt be able to stop the hypo, and then went to the local 24h store to buy 3 bottles of AA drink (14,5g carbs/100ml).

ambulance arrived to monitor me and i drank 2 bottles aa drink. Bg went back above 4,0 at 7:45 without further medical intervention.

i’m not sure if i could have accidentely switched the lantus insulin for novorapid. Or if the lantus can do such crazy stuff. I never had such heavy drops within just one hour. However, Not a nice experience at all.

Hi- sorry to hear about your ordeal. I think you took to much Insulin. The amount you took is if you was having a meal. Next time try small amount of insulin to correct blood sugar level until breakfast.

 

[DaveQ45]

This morning i had a really terrible experience.

i woke up around 6:00 and checked my bg: it was 12,2 mmol.

i decided to take my lantus log term insulin shot of 25 units.

i snoozed my alarm to wake up at 6:58 to wake up with a bg value of 2,2 and a further downward trend. 1 minute later my Libre indicated LOW. I immediately drank 1 liter of fruit juice (69g of carbs). 7:17 still low value and feeling dizzy.

so called an ambulance in case i wouldnt be able to stop the hypo, and then went to the local 24h store to buy 3 bottles of AA drink (14,5g carbs/100ml).

ambulance arrived to monitor me and i drank 2 bottles aa drink. Bg went back above 4,0 at 7:45 without further medical intervention.

i’m not sure if i could have accidentely switched the lantus insulin for novorapid. Or if the lantus can do such crazy stuff. I never had such heavy drops within just one hour. However, Not a nice experience at all.

Hi, glad things worked out ok. It took me ages to learn not to “panic” by injecting on highs and over eating and drinking on lows. Didn’t know if I was coming or going. On lows gave my self gradual carbos, combining simple with complex and testing blood as I went along. On highs, waiting to allow natural decline and if hungry just eat protein food and/or very carbo food. It’s very scary, I know. Keep safe.

 

[Glucobabu]

That's an interesting point, and I definitely agree that lower insulin doses reduces the risk of catastrophic hypos. Not sure about the 130g though. When I had a lantus low, based on 17 units of lantus, an equivalent dose of humalog would have required 50g of carbs. I probably had about 40g of glucose, and my liver helped out and/or not all the lantus acted in one hit (I suspect at least a bit of the latter because I think there was some lantus in my system the next day) and though I went down to the low 2s I retained consciousness. But without that 40g of glucose I think I would have been lower, so am not sure whether my liver would have supplied its 130g in time....

I guess we should now go out and look up a fatal dose of insulin for a non diabetic??? (Anyone remember the story about the GP who was found guilty of murdering his wife by insulin because he googled the dosage?).

OK, my googling was pretty inconclusive (but a lot, ie 100s of units) but I don't think anyone really knows, as it's not an experiment you do on purpose....

Yes, I remember that GP killing his wife by injecting massive amount of insulin. Apparently it wasn’t possible in those days to detect level of insulin in autopsy!

 

[CarolMac]

Hope your feeling better , to be honest I read about half of your post and instinctively I thought he’s taken his short acting by mistake, it would certainly give you the same situation if you had, don’t know if you do but different coloured injection pens can help prevent this . Glad all is back to normal

It has happened to me before, taking the short acting insulin instead of the long acting insulin. I realized immediately and shoved handfuls of M & M candy inside my mouth.

 

[CarolMac]

No not into muscle probably as i never inkect into my legs.
I could have switched the lantus and novorapid as it was early and still dark. But both insulinpens ‘feel’ very different (flexpens) so normally i wouldnt switch them. The ambulance crew told me to keep the novorapid in the kitchen instead of taking it with me to my bedroom from now on.

Good idea.